Generaloberst Fedor von Bock visited the division on 19 April 1940 and later wrote:

The combat readiness of the SS non-commissioned officers and squadrons in insufficient. We will pay for that with unnecessary blood-shedding! It's a pity to waste such wonderful human resources. (5)

It was initially held in reserve during the campaign in the west, but was soon sent to the front in Belgium. They suffered heavy losses compared to other units but managed to keep up the advance. It later fought in France seeing its only real action against colonial troops at Tarare.

It took part in the invasion of the USSR attached to Heeresgruppe Nord and advanced through the Baltic states and towards Leningrad.Generalmajor Otto Lancelle, commander of 121. Infanterie-Division, on 5 July 1941 made an official complaint to LVI Panzerkorps about the behaviour of SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 1 during the capture of Kraslau (Krāslava), including looting and unprofessional behaviour during the assault itself leading to unnecessarily high losses among the German troops.It remained in the Leningrad area until the Soviet counteroffensive pushed the Germans back and it was encircled at Demyansk January to March 1942 when it broke out. It remained on the front until it was transferred to France October 1942 where it regrouped. It was sent back to the Eastern front where it fought at Kursk and Kharkov. It was sent to Hungary December 1944 where it took part in the failed attempt to relieve Budapest.

It surrendered to US forces in Austria, but was promtly turned over to the Soviets and few survived.

On 27 May 1940 at Le Paradis 4th company of the 2nd regiment, commanded by SS-Obersturmführer Fritz Knöchlein, killed 100 Brittish POWs.

Soldiers from Totenkopf were involved in the killings of black French colonial POWs at Lyon during the invasion of France 1940. (3)

Generalmajor Otto Lancelle, commander of 121. Infanterie-Division, on 5 July 1941 made an official complaint to LVI Panzerkorps about soldiers of SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment 1 looting the town of Kraslau (Krāslava) after it was captured by the German forces.

Manpower strength

Honor titles

“Totenkopf” means “death’s head” and this division was named after the concentration camp guards of the Totenkopfverbände (= death’s head units), from which it was built, with the addition of new recruits and transfers from SS-VT units.

One regiment within this division was also named:SS-Pz.Gren. Regt. 6 „Theodor Eicke“SS-Obergruppenführer Theodor Eicke (17 Oct. 1892 – 26 Feb. 1943) was infamous as one of the architects of the concentration camp system. The commandant of the Dachau concentration camp and later inspector of concentration camps and death’s head units, he was also in charge of the forming of the Totenkopf-Division, which he commanded until killed on the Eastern Front when his observation plane was shot down near Michailowka.

SS-Pz. Gren. Regt. 5 is often incorrectly listed with the title „Thule“The Thule-Gesellschaft (= „Thule Association“) was a neo-Germanic, racist and anti-semitic nationalist organization founded in 1918, which used the “sunwheel” swastika, combined with a dagger, as its symbol and was somewhat involved in the founding of the Nazi Party. The name “Thule” as such refers to a mystical, ancient Nordic high culture, which figured largely in the Nazi belief system.

Notable members

Richard Baer (commandant of Auschwitz)Fritz Biermeier (usually credited with 31+ destroyed tanks but the exact number is unknown)Fritz Christen (Credited with singlehandedly destroying 13 Soviet tanks with a 50mm anti-tank gun 24 September 1941 after the rest of the crew had been killed, received the Knight's Cross on 20 October 1941 as the first Waffen-SS enlisted man)Theodor Eicke (former Inspector of Concentration camps and commandant of Dachau)Christian Peder Kryssing (Danish officer who reached the highest Waffen-SS rank of any non-German, SS-Brigadeführer)Jens Kryssing (son of Christian Peder Kryssing, the highest ranking non-German in the Waffen-SS, KIA 1942)Karl Leiner (son in law of Theodor Eicke)Igor Moravec (son of Emanuel Moravec, Minister of Education and National Enlightenment in the government of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia)Jürgen Stroop (infamous for his role in the crushing of the Warsaw uprising)

Officers serving in the Einsatzgruppen and Concentration Camps

Concentration Camps 159Einsatzgruppen 1(includes officers serving in the Einsatzgruppen or Concentration Camps either prior to or after service in this unit)

Insignia

The tactical marking of the division was a white skull with crossed bones, normally the skull was facing left.

The "Totenkopf" cuff title was authorized for this unit on 1 September 1942.The "Theodor Eicke" cuff title was authorized for SS-Panzergrenadier Regiment 6 Theodor Eicke in March 1943.The "Thule" cuff title was authorized for SS-Panzergrenadier Regiment 5 in 1942. It was ordered to be discontinued in 1943 but was used until the end of the war.

A totenkopf collar was initially worn by all members of the division, in vertical format until May 1940 and then in horizontal format.

SS-Hauptsturmführer Max Seela wearing the horizontal pattern collar tabs and the totenkopf-cuff title which was used by SS-Totenkopfverbände, not the Totenkopf division(Courtesy of Bundesarchiv/Wikimedia, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 Germany)

Other militaria

This is an Army enlisted tunic dated 1940 of a SS-Hauptsturmführer and the hand-embroidered silver bullion skull collar tab is of the early (SS-Totenkopfverbände) variety, as well as the skull cuffband. It was drawn from Army supplies in 1940 when the Totenkopf and SS-Polizei-Divisions were being assembled during the Western Campaign. Many officers who were field commanders often took enlisted tunics and wore them, often with modifications.(Courtesy of Willi Schumacher)

This is a herring bone twill drill jacket used by the troops when in garrison. During the hot summers in Russia, these were often worn in the field. This particular jacket has many interior modifications. There are indications of twin upper pockets including a scalloped pocket flap; however, there are no pockets. The officer had a dark-green wool collar appended to the jacket with officer-quality insignia including a hand-made silver bullion skull collar tab of the Totenkopf Division variety. The SS styled shoulder boards are sewn into the sleeve seams and the sleeve eagle is of the machine woven style (often referred to by collectors as Bevo).(Courtesy of Willi Schumacher)

Tanks of the Totenkopf division in a town on the Eastern Front 1944(Courtesy of Bundesarchiv/Wikimedia, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 Germany)

From the SS newspaper "Das Schwarze Korps", 6 November 1941, on the awarding of the Knights Cross to Fritz Christen(Courtesy of Florian)

Footnotes

1. SS-Obergruppenführer Theodor Eicke was wounded 7 July 1941 by a Soviet mine that blew up his command car.2. SS-Obergruppenführer Theodor Eicke was killed 26 February 1943 when his Fieseler Storch aircraft was shot down by Soviet ground fire.3. "Murderous Elite: The Waffen-SS and its complete record of war crimes" by James Pontolillo, page 74 and "Hitler's African Victims: The German Army Massacres of Black French Soldiers in 1940" by Raffael Scheck.4. "La campagne de 1940" by Christine Levisse-Touzé.5. "Totenkopf 1939-1943" by Jacek Solarz, page 18.